Junk Mail

Direct mail—catalogs, flyers, credit card offers, memberships to clubs and organizations of all kinds—makes for a lot of waste in the typical household. 

Here is what you can do to reduce the amount of junk mail you receive.

Junk mail image

  • Catalog Choice lets you choose which catalogs you wish to receive in your mailbox, or contact the catalog’s customer service and ask them to remove your name from their mailing list.
  • The Direct Marketing Association offers consumers and households a way to ask mail order companies to remove their names from mail lists. Be sure to provide all the various spellings and address versions that you want removed from mail lists. Your name will remain on the do-not-mail list for five years, but you can renew at any time.
  • www.OptOutPrescreen.com to reduce the amount of credit card offers you get.
  • RetailMeNot (formerly Red Plum) to remove your name from their mailings.
  • ValPak — just fill out form and ask to be removed from list.
  • Sign up for online bill pay — sign up and switch to paperless statements for financial statements and bills you pay regularly.  
  • For everything else, send a postcard. Tell them you want your name removed from their list. Include any customer identification number found on the shipping label.

Why stop junk mail? 

Hassle: You spend 30 hours each year just handling junk mail (five minutes per day).
Energy: One day’s supply of junk mail contains the energy to heat 250,000 homes.
Resources: 100 million trees are needed to produce one year’s worth of junk mail.
Waste: 5.8 million tons. 

Keep it from coming back 

Mailers sell and rent names. Whenever you supply your name and address (warranty card, subscriptions, contests, etc) ask to be placed on a do-not-mail list. By limiting the circulation of your personal information, you’re also securing your identity. You can often politely decline to give out sensitive information. 

Recycle what you have

Find out what you can recycle at home.

Source: MPCA